As Ash's figure appeared at Oak's Research Institute, the entire place instantly fell silent.
Misty was the first to react, her eyes immediately reddened, her mouth opened as if she wanted to shout his name, but her throat felt choked.
The next second she rushed over and plunged into Ash's arms.
Ash staggered back half a step after being hit by her. Although he had regained some strength, it was a vast difference compared to before. Being accustomed to possessing immense power, the current situation was truly uncomfortable for Ash.
He found it difficult even just to stand, which is why Misty's impact caused him to stumble.
Ash paused in confusion and then gently placed his hand on the back of her head. He could feel her small head trembling slightly, showing how much pressure and worry Misty was enduring.
He lowered his head, resting his chin on her head, the corners of his mouth curling into a smile, and said with full spirit, "I'm back."
Misty buried her face in his chest, muttering an "Mm", and tightened her arms even more.
Togepi, squeezed in her arms, let out a cry, flapping its little hands in the air. Only then did Misty remember it was there and quickly loosened her grip on Togepi.
Pikachu jumped down from Ash's shoulder, quickly took Togepi away, and winked at Misty — "continue.jpg".
This made Misty somewhat embarrassed. She didn't continue to hold Ash, but her hand tightly clasped his palm, as if afraid he would suddenly disappear.
Serena also stood up, her pure blue eyes fixedly watching Ash, finally revealing a relieved smile... Coming back is good... Coming back is good.
In this joyful atmosphere, Professor Oak was the first to speak: "Ash, how are things?"
"Resolved." Ash lifted his head, grinning at Delia and Professor Oak.
Then he turned his head and glanced at Mewtwo.
Mewtwo understood, using her spiritual power to gently place Mitsumi on the large sofa at Oak's Research Institute.
Mr. Mime saw this and quickly ran off to fetch the medical kit.
Up until now, everyone's attention was on Ash, and only when Mitsumi was placed down did someone notice Mewtwo had been carrying someone on her back.
"It's Mitsumi!" Delia exclaimed softly, quickly stepping forward.
She bent over, carefully inspecting the little girl lying on the sofa.
Mitsumi's breathing was steady, her face still bearing traces of tears, but not showing any signs of pain; she seemed to be simply asleep.
Delia gently placed the back of her hand against Mitsumi's forehead, then withdrew it a moment later, her shoulders relaxing slightly.
"She's just asleep, not feverish and has no external injuries."
She stood up, straightening Mitsumi's clothes, then turned to Ash: "What exactly happened?"
Ash scratched his head before delivering the pre-prepared explanation.
"The Crystal Tower was the result of an Unown attaching to Mitsumi, fulfilling her wish. She wanted Professor Spencer Hale back so much, and due to some other coincidences, that's why such a grand scene occurred."
This wasn't much different from Professor Oak's prediction, but the statement was evidently not entirely convincing, as after the explosion of the Crystal Tower, another entity entered the battlefield.
An elderly woman immediately asked, "What about those lights? Auntie saw it just now; a green beam of light came down from the sky, followed by multicolored lights, and the Crystal Tower shattered. It didn't seem like something a normal Pokemon could cause."
Although she didn't know much about Pokemon, this situation obviously wasn't something any normal Pokemon could produce!
Even on TV, those Champion-level Pokemon had never displayed such miraculous scenes.
That green light was like a living meteor descending from the sky!
Ash waved his hand, dismissing her concerns, claiming those phenomena were caused by the Unown.
Most people didn't know much about Unown, sparking a lively discussion about what kind of Legendary Beast it might be to possess such power.
Brock and Serena quietly watched Ash explaining to the neighbors.
They could tell Ash was deliberately concealing something.
Ash had Mewtwo with him, yet he was gone for so long, and despite tidying up, Ash still looked somewhat disheveled.
Counting Ash, there were two Divine Domain Level beings here, yet it took so long to resolve, and such a terrifying explosion shockwave had been released; this battle was definitely more than a few unstable Unown.
But with so many people present, they knew it wasn't the right time to ask.
Once the neighbors' clamorous questioning gradually subsided, Ash stood up straight, raising his voice slightly.
"Dear neighbors, the crisis of the Crystal Tower has been eliminated, and Pallet Town won't face any more threats. Everyone can safely go home."
The hall fell silent for a moment, then a torrent of thanks flooded in.
Someone wanted to treat Ash to dinner, another wished to give him a gift, and an aunt held onto Ash's other arm without letting go, repeatedly saying she wanted to introduce her daughter to him.
As soon as the words fell, a cold gaze shot over from the side.
Misty grabbed Ash with one hand, her other hand already clenched into a fist. Her emerald-green eyes narrowed to a slit as she stared straight at that middle-aged woman.
The woman's hand jerked back from Ash's arm like it had been burned. She gave two dry laughs, turned around, and squeezed her way out of the crowd.
When the back of the last neighbor disappeared at the institute's doorway, the doors softly closed, and the sound of footsteps faded into the distance.
The research institute suddenly went quiet, completely different from the bustle just now.
Ash was still standing in the center of the hall, the easygoing smile he'd used to say goodbye to the neighbors still hanging on his face.
But Misty knew that smile was being forced.
His breathing was getting heavier, and the rise and fall of his shoulders was much bigger than before. Clearly, Ash was already close to his limit.
Professor Oak waited a moment. The gentle look on his face slowly faded, and as he looked at Ash, his expression turned serious.
"There's no outsiders here now. Tell me—what's the real situation?" He paused, then raised his hand and pointed to the window.
"That green pillar of light—maybe others couldn't tell, but I'm not so old and blind yet. That was genuine Divine Domain Level power."
"The shockwave from the Crystal Tower explosion alone was comparable to the impact of a Divine Domain Level battle, and then Divine Domain Level Pokemon joined the fight afterward. That's not the kind of commotion that Entei and those Unown I encountered could cause!"
Professor Oak spoke straight to the point. He might have stopped being Champion many years ago, but as a researcher his eye for these things had only grown sharper. There was no way he'd mistake Divine Domain Level power.
Just what kind of battle had Ash gone through over at the Crystal Tower…
Ash opened his mouth, about to say something, when Brock had already stepped forward.
"And your current condition." Brock's face was unusually grave, and his tone carried an incredulous note. "I've traveled with you for more than half a year, but I've never seen you this weak. Even after battling Mr. Brandon, you weren't exhausted to this extent, right? Just how much of the power in your body did you burn through?"
Maybe Ash's tough-guy act could fool other people, but trying to fool partners who've traveled with him year-round… his acting was still a bit too lacking.
Ash froze for a moment, then his shoulders slumped and his whole body leaned back against Misty. He closed his eyes and let out a long breath.
"So you noticed."
Misty reached out to steady his arm, feeling his full weight pressing down on her. Ash's familiar scent rushed over her. Normally she might have blushed at being leaned on by Ash in such a public setting, but right now, all she felt in her heart was pure pain.
Just what had Ash gone through, that he couldn't even stand steady anymore…
She pressed her lips together without saying a word, just shifted her shoulder forward half a step so he could lean more securely.
Ash opened his eyes again, the corner of his mouth tugging into a weak smile.
"Then I'll start from the beginning."
"The Crystal Tower incident was indeed caused by Unown and Mitsumi. But mixed into it… was Team Galactic."
"Team Galactic!!" Everyone cried out in shock. None of them had expected Team Galactic would be involved. Could it be this had been Team Galactic's scheme from the start?
They'd already extended their hand all the way over here?
Ash nodded, then laid everything out in full: Pluton and Saturn's appearance, how they brainwashed Mitsumi, how Unown were forcibly infused into Yveltal's origin—step by step, he spelled it out.
As for the crisis where he'd almost died, Ash still didn't mention it this time, only saying that at the critical moment, Rayquaza descended from the sky and resolved the danger.
By this point, Professor Oak already felt like he was listening to scripture in an unknown tongue, because he had absolutely no idea why Rayquaza would show up to help.
Misty and the others, on the other hand, knew Ash had the Green Treasure Pearl. Rayquaza had come because Ash used the Green Treasure Pearl to summon it.
Don't be fooled by how carefree Ash looks; at crucial moments, he's more meticulous and more cautious than anyone!
It was precisely thanks to Ash being so cautious that he managed to snatch his life back this time.
Until finally, Ash said that Giratina broke free from the control of the Griseous Orb. Then, when he asked Giratina where it planned to go, Ash paused, then took out a Heavy Ball from his waist and placed it on the table in front of him.
"And then I caught it."
The institute fell silent enough to hear a pin drop.
Misty's lashes trembled. She lowered her head to stare at the Heavy Ball on the table, emerald eyes unblinking.
Brock stood there expressionless, his mouth slightly open.
Serena opened her mouth, wanting to exclaim in amazement, but no sound came out.
Was this something a normal person could experience, let alone accomplish?
Yes, Ash wasn't exactly a normal person, but even among all of Ash's travel experiences, the sheer absurdity of this incident was absolutely in a league of its own!
Just because there was trouble in Pallet Town, and he came back for Pallet Town… and then he went and caught the Tier One God, the Netherworld Dragon?
We're talking about the Netherworld Dragon! The Legendary Beast that, together with Palkia and Dialga, forms the Sinnoh Three Gods, and whose strength surpasses those two dragons!
And now it had just been casually caught by Ash like this?!
And the way Ash phrased it was like he was saying, "For dinner today, let's have sweet and sour pork." He just pulls out a Heavy Ball and tells them it contains the master of the Reverse World, one of the Sinnoh Three Gods—Giratina. Who the hell would believe that!!
If they didn't know what kind of person Ash was, they would absolutely think he was making it up!
The next second, Professor Oak lunged forward like an arrow, grabbing Ash's shoulders with both hands, the wrinkles on his old face stretched by a kind of feverish excitement, almost childlike.
"Quick! Hurry and let this Giratina out so I can study it! That's the legendary master of the Reverse World, the head of the Sinnoh Three Gods, a top Tier One God with a Divine Position!!"
The thought of getting to come into contact with one of the absolute highest existences in the Pokemon Realm completely flipped Professor Oak's whole demeanor.
A Pokemon of this Level is something countless researchers might not encounter even if they spent a whole lifetime battering against the doors of knowledge.
It's true that Ash has a lot of rare Pokemon, including Little Lugia, a Tier One God that hasn't yet grown up.
But not fully grown, and without a Divine Position—compared to Giratina, that really is a bit lacking, even if she's already rare enough.
A being like Giratina, one that holds a Divine Position, is precisely the kind of Pokemon Professor Oak dreams of studying.
Faced with Professor Oak's excited look, the Heavy Ball on the table trembled, and then a strand of Telepathy resonated in everyone's minds.
'Since you're people Ash trusts, I'll trust you as well. However, I must stay at Ash's side now. If Ash leaves but I remain in this place, the consequences would be unimaginable.'
This was Giratina's voice.
Professor Oak froze for a moment, then realized that Giratina was politely turning him down.
But the reasoning was indeed flawless. Giratina staying by Ash's side was precisely because of Cyrus. If it stayed at Oak's Research Institute, wouldn't that defeat the whole purpose?
If Cyrus attacked and Ash wasn't here, once the Netherworld Dragon was controlled, it would be a catastrophe for the entire Oak's Research Institute!
Hearing that, Professor Oak calmed down as well, a guilty expression appearing on his face. "My apologies, Ash. I didn't think it through."
"It's fine, it's normal, Professor Oak. As long as we deal with Cyrus, I believe Giratina will be willing to stay at Oak's Research Institute for a while. Isn't that right, Giratina?"
'Mm. As long as I can reclaim the Griseous Orb, I'm willing to stay at Ash's side and watch over him for a hundred years.'
If Cyrus could be dealt with and the Griseous Orb reclaimed, that kind of kindness couldn't be repaid with just a few words. So what if it stayed at Oak's Research Institute to be studied a bit?
Giratina even made a promise to guard Ash for a hundred years!
A promise made by a top Tier One God is not something that could ever be taken back.
In other words, when Ash reclaims the Griseous Orb, that will be the moment Giratina truly becomes Ash's.
"Speaking of Cyrus… I know who this man is." After calming down, Professor Oak dropped an earth-shattering bombshell on Ash.
He actually knew who Cyrus really was!!
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